Enhanced Oil Recovery Technologies, 4th Edition

Topic Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Topic is a continuation of the previous successful Topic “Enhanced Oil Recovery Technologies, 3rd Edition”.

For many years, there has been a clear trend of increasing energy demand. Despite the energy transition, oil and natural gas will remain as the main energy source for the next several dozen years. As the reservoir is depleted during primary recovery, oil recovery becomes increasingly difficult, even though the deposits are not yet completely recovered. Therefore, it is essential to develop innovative methods to increase oil recovery from known reservoirs. Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) has been considered as the most promising technology to increase the recovery factor.

This topic has been proposed to international journals to further disseminate the results of basic research, laboratory investigations and field testing or implementation in areas of the following topics:

• Studies of Fluids and Interfaces in Porous Media;
• Complex interfacial rheology and multiphase flow;
• Fundamental Research on Surfactants and Polymers;
• Development of Techniques for Gas Flooding (CO₂, N₂, Foam, etc.);
• Thermal Recovery;
• Emerging Technologies, including Smart Water and Microbial EOR;
• Hybrid Technology;
• Related Technologies, including carbon capture and sequestration (CCS).
• Artificial intelligence/machine learning/deep learning applications in EOR techniques

Dr. Jan Vinogradov
Dr. Xiang Zhou
Topic Editors

Keywords

Participating Journals

Journal Name	Impact Factor	CiteScore	Launched Year	First Decision (median)	APC
Applied Sciences applsci	2.5	5.5	2011	19.8 Days	CHF 2400	Submit
Energies energies	3.2	7.3	2008	16.2 Days	CHF 2600	Submit
Fluids fluids	1.8	4.0	2016	21.7 Days	CHF 1800	Submit
Gels gels	5.3	7.6	2015	12.5 Days	CHF 2100	Submit
Processes processes	2.8	5.5	2013	16 Days	CHF 2400	Submit

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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All Applied Sciences Energies Fluids Gels Processes

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27 pages, 10877 KB  

Open AccessArticle

Engineering and Technological Approaches to Well Killing in Hydrophilic Formations with Simultaneous Oil Production Enhancement and Water Shutoff Using Selective Polymer-Inorganic Composites

by Valery Meshalkin, Rustem Asadullin, Sergey Vezhnin, Alexander Voloshin, Rida Gallyamova, Annaguly Deryaev, Vladimir Dokichev, Anvar Eshmuratov, Lyubov Lenchenkova, Artem Pavlik, Anatoly Politov, Victor Ragulin, Danabek Saduakassov, Farit Safarov, Maksat Tabylganov, Aleksey Telin and Ravil Yakubov

Energies 2025, 18(17), 4721; https://doi.org/10.3390/en18174721 - 4 Sep 2025

Viewed by 422

Abstract

Well-killing operations in water-sensitive hydrophilic formations are often complicated by extended well clean-up periods and, in some cases, failure to restore the well’s production potential post-kill. Typical development targets exhibiting these properties include the Neocomian and Jurassic deposits of fields in Western Siberia [...] Read more.

Well-killing operations in water-sensitive hydrophilic formations are often complicated by extended well clean-up periods and, in some cases, failure to restore the well’s production potential post-kill. Typical development targets exhibiting these properties include the Neocomian and Jurassic deposits of fields in Western Siberia and Western Kazakhstan. This paper proposes a well-killing method incorporating simultaneous near-wellbore treatment. In cases where heavy oil components (asphaltenes, resins, or paraffins) are deposited in the near-wellbore zone, their removal with a solvent results in post-operation flow rates that exceed pre-restoration levels. For wells not affected by asphaltene, resin, and paraffin deposits, killing is performed using a blocking pill of invert emulsion stabilized with an emulsifier and hydrophobic nanosilica. During filtration into the formation, this emulsion does not break but rather reforms according to the pore throat sizes. Flow rates in such wells typically match pre-restoration levels. The described engineering solution proves less effective when the well fluid water cut exceeds 60%. For wells exhibiting premature water breakthrough that have not yet produced their estimated oil volume, the water source is identified, and water shutoff operations are conducted. This involves polymer-gel systems crosslinked with resorcinol and paraform, reinforced with inorganic components such as chrysotile microdispersions, micro- and nanodispersions of shungite mineral, and gas black. Oscillation testing identified the optimal additive concentration range of 0.6–0.7 wt%, resulting in a complex modulus increase of up to 25.7%. The most effective polymer-inorganic composite developed by us, incorporating gas black, demonstrates high water shutoff capability (residual resistance factor ranges from 12.5 to 65.0 units within the permeability interval of 151.7 to 10.5 mD). Furthermore, the developed composites exhibit the ability to selectively reduce water permeability disproportionately more than oil permeability. Filtration tests confirmed that the residual permeability to oil after placing the blocking composition with graphene is 6.75 times higher than that to water. Consequently, such treatments reduce the well water cut. Field trials confirmed the effectiveness of the developed polymer-inorganic composite systems. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Enhanced Oil Recovery Technologies, 4th Edition)

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18 pages, 4025 KB  

Open AccessArticle

Research on the Mechanism of Reverse Sand Addition in Horizontal Shale Gas Well Fracturing Based on Intergranular Erosion of Proppants in near Wellbore Fractures

by Xuanyu Liu, Faxin Yi, Song Guo, Meijia Zhu and Yujie Bai

Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(17), 9589; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15179589 - 30 Aug 2025

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Abstract

To improve fracturing support efficiency of terrestrial shale oil reservoirs with uneven proppant placement, this study used complex mesh flat-plate simulations and ANSYS FLUENT (2020) simulations to test four sand addition processes. Proppants were 70/140 mesh quartz sand with a density of 2650 [...] Read more.

To improve fracturing support efficiency of terrestrial shale oil reservoirs with uneven proppant placement, this study used complex mesh flat-plate simulations and ANSYS FLUENT (2020) simulations to test four sand addition processes. Proppants were 70/140 mesh quartz sand with a density of 2650 kg/m³ and 40/70 mesh ceramic particles with a density of 2000 kg/m³, and the carrier was hydroxypropyl guar gum fracturing fluid with a viscosity of 4.46–13.4 mPa·s at 25 °C. Alternating sand addition performed best: sand-laying efficiency reached 52 percent, 10 percentage points higher than continuous sand addition and 12 percentage points higher than mixed sand addition; sand embankment void area was 1400 cm², 18.3 percent lower than continuous sand addition; proppant entry into secondary cracks increased 23.8 percent compared with reverse sand addition; at branch crack Position 2, 1.3 m from the inlet and at a 90-degree angle, its equilibrium height was 210 mm and paving rate 0.131. This study fills gaps of no systematic multi-process comparison and insufficient quantification of crack geometry–sand parameter coupling in existing research; its novelty lies in the unified visualization comparison of four processes, revealing geometry–parameter coupling and integrating experiment simulation; the optimal scheme also improves fracture support efficiency 21.5 percent compared with conventional continuous sand addition. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Enhanced Oil Recovery Technologies, 4th Edition)

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19 pages, 12170 KB  

Open AccessArticle

Development and Interfacial Mechanism of Epoxy Soybean Oil-Based Semi-Liquid Gel Materials for Wellbore Sealing Applications

by Yuexin Tian, Yintao Liu, Haifeng Dong, Xiangjun Liu and Jinjun Huang

Gels 2025, 11(7), 482; https://doi.org/10.3390/gels11070482 - 22 Jun 2025

Viewed by 604

Abstract

In this study, a novel semi-liquid gel material based on bisphenol A-type epoxy resin (E51), methylhexahydrophthalic anhydride (MHHPA), and epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) was developed for high-performance wellbore sealing. The gel system exhibits tunable gelation times ranging from 1 to 10 h (±0.5 [...] Read more.

In this study, a novel semi-liquid gel material based on bisphenol A-type epoxy resin (E51), methylhexahydrophthalic anhydride (MHHPA), and epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) was developed for high-performance wellbore sealing. The gel system exhibits tunable gelation times ranging from 1 to 10 h (±0.5 h) and maintains a low viscosity of <100 ± 2 mPa·s at 25 °C, enabling efficient injection into the wellbore. The optimized formulation achieved a compressive strength exceeding 112.5 ± 3.1 MPa and a breakthrough pressure gradient of over 50 ± 2.8 MPa/m with only 0.9 PV dosage. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) confirmed the formation of a dense, crosslinked polyester network. Interfacial adhesion was significantly enhanced by the incorporation of 0.25 wt% octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS), yielding an adhesion layer thickness of 391.6 ± 12.7 nm—approximately 9.89 times higher than that of the unmodified system. Complete degradation was achieved within 48 ± 2 h at 120 °C using a γ-valerolactone and p-toluenesulfonic acid solution. These results demonstrate the material’s potential as a high-strength, injectable, and degradable sealing solution for complex subsurface environments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Topic Enhanced Oil Recovery Technologies, 4th Edition)

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